Back with Algeni, he walked alongside Nen and Rose through the bustling streets of the town. The lively chatter of merchants, the rumble of wagon wheels rolling across the cobblestone roads, and the conversations of adventurers heading out on their daily quests blended into a constant symphony of life. The cool morning breeze drifted through the streets, carrying with it the aroma of fresh bread and roasted meat from nearby stalls. Even so, Algeni barely spoke. He didn’t know the two of them well enough to feel comfortable starting a conversation.
Nen glanced at him out of the corner of his eye before asking with genuine curiosity,
“Are you always this quiet?”
Algeni answered calmly,
“Most of the time.”
Rose studied him for a few seconds before commenting,
“You don’t really look like someone who doesn’t talk much.”
Algeni raised an eyebrow and asked curiously,
“Really? Why do you say that?”
Rose shrugged.
“I don’t know. You just seem like the kind of person who has a lot of stories to tell… or at least a few good jokes.”
A faint smile appeared on Algeni’s face before he replied,
“I don’t think I have much to tell. Before joining the Adventurers’ Guild, my life was pretty boring.”
Rose nodded slowly.
“Well… there’s not much anyone can do with that.”
Nen chuckled and joined the conversation with his usual carefree smile.
“I don’t think that’s so bad. At least you had a normal life, right?”
Algeni repeated the words almost under his breath.
“A normal life…?”
Those words stirred countless fragments of his past. Memories flashed through his mind like scattered sparks, and for a brief moment, his expression darkened as he fell silent.
Noticing the sudden change, Nen turned toward him and spoke more gently.
“Hey, I didn’t mean for you to think about it that hard. If you don’t want to answer, that’s fine.”
Algeni snapped out of his thoughts and gave a small shake of his head.
“No, I’m fine. I just got caught up thinking about the past. But… I guess you could say I did have a normal life.”
Nen smiled sincerely.
“I’m glad to hear that.”
The three of them continued walking through the lively streets, weaving between adventurers, merchants, and travelers going about their day.
Suddenly…
A translucent window appeared in front of Algeni.
System Update Complete. New Features Activated.
The screen suddenly began to tremble in an unusual way.
Algeni frowned.
“What the hell is wrong with this thing?” he wondered. This chapter was copied from novelping.com without permission.
A second later, tiny sparks of electricity began dancing across the surface of the window.
“Is this thing about to explode or something?” he thought again.
Without warning, a brilliant flash burst from the system, blinding him for several seconds.
When his vision finally returned, he realized the system looked completely different.
Its color had changed.
The interface was sleeker, cleaner, and far more modern than before.
Before he had the chance to inspect it further, Nen’s voice reached him.
“Hey, are you okay? You just stood there with your eyes closed for a few seconds.”
Algeni immediately remembered that neither Nen nor Rose could see the system.
“Right… looks like they still can’t see it,” he thought.
Trying to hide what had happened, he answered casually,
“Yeah, I’m fine. I just got a little dizzy.”
Nen nodded.
“If you’re sure you’re okay, come on. We’re almost there.”
Rose, looking noticeably more concerned, added,
“Are you really okay? According to Lili, you lost a lot of blood fighting that orc and all those goblins.”
Algeni answered with his usual calm tone.
“Yeah, I’m fine. Don’t worry.”
Rose sighed softly.
“Well… if you say you’re okay, there’s not much I can do.”
They continued walking as the breeze gently swayed the cloaks of the adventurers passing by.
Taking advantage of the fact that no one else could see it, Algeni looked back at the system.
“I knew there was going to be an update… but I didn’t expect it to change its appearance too.”
He quietly sighed, wondering just how many new features had been added.
Without any warning…
The system began making strange noises.
“Chip… zip…”
Algeni frowned.
“Is this thing short-circuiting?”
Suddenly, a tiny blue sphere of light shot out from the system.
It circled around Algeni several times before floating to a stop directly in front of his face.
He stared at it curiously.
He reached out with one finger to touch it.
The instant he did…
Two tiny eyes suddenly appeared on the glowing sphere.
Algeni instinctively took a step back in surprise.
A moment later, a pair of tiny arms popped out from its sides.
Still staring in disbelief, he cautiously reached toward it again.
The sphere instantly formed a tiny mouth and shouted,
“Hey! Don’t touch me!”
Algeni’s eyes widened.
“Whoa! You can talk? What are you?”
The little sphere spun around him several times before stopping once more.
“I’m an assistant. I’ll help you understand the system after its new update.”
Algeni tilted his head slightly.
“So the update added so many things that it needed its own assistant?”
The tiny assistant puffed itself up proudly.
“That’s right! A lot of things have changed. I’m here to help you. So, shall we begin?”
Algeni smiled awkwardly and shook his head.
“That sounds great, but I have a few things I need to do first. Can we do it later?”
The little assistant floated a little lower, clearly disappointed.
“…Alright.”
Algeni smiled.
“Great. Then let me catch up with those two before they get too far ahead without noticing.”
Without wasting another second, he broke into a run to catch up with Nen and Rose.
The tiny assistant let out a dramatic sigh before floating after him.
In an entirely different dimension, a hooded man silently watched everything unfold.
Countless floating screens surrounded him, each displaying events from different parts of the world, their faint glow illuminating the endless darkness around him.
A small smile formed beneath his hood as he quietly murmured,
“So… this is what he meant by consciousness.”
His glowing blue eyes narrowed with interest.
“Well… I have to admit…”
“It’s not bad at all.”